The National International Top 20 of 2018

Two-time Juno winner, Kiran Ahluwalia says she created her seventh album, 7 Billion, as a direct musical response to the loss of ‘brotherhood’ in mankind. She says: “It is a theme close to my personal experience. My story is that of an immigrant born in India and raised in Canada. As an immigrant child, the hardships we faced were touted as temporary – the effects were permanent. On the one hand, I developed a wonderful double culture – two sets of wardrobe and multiple languages to think in. On the other, I developed conflicting etiquettes and ways of doing things that were neither ‘fully’ Indian nor ‘fully’ Canadian. The earth now holds seven billion people; for me, this means there are seven billion unique ways of interpreting things. Yet wherever we live, the majority’s way of doing things becomes the norm; and whatever is different and foreign can be easily mistrusted.” 7 Billion features Rez Abbasi (guitars), Louis Simao (Hammond B3 organ, accordion, synthesizers), Rich Brown (electric bass), Davide Direnzo (drum kit), Nitin Mitta (tabla), Mark Duggan (djembe, hand percussion). -- Catherine Fisher